|
Although it is not typically used in traditional Japanese tattooing, the kabuki face is used in Western tattoos to evoke an Oriental feel. Kabuki is the traditional form of theater in Japan, where the actors blend music, song, dance, and mime with elaborate costuming and makeup to serve up an extravagant performance. The kabuki face is based upon the exaggerated makeup used by the actors, where the face is first painted completely white and then given the distinguishing marks of heroes or villains, with particular attention paid to the eyes. The kabuki face in tattoo artwork is a link to traditional forms of popular Japanese entertainment, is representative of that culture, and it is also an opportunity to incorporate a stark piece of artwork into a design.
|
|
The Pueblo Indian kachina can actually be one of three things: the ancestral spirits of their religion, the masked dancers who perform at ceremonials, or the small carved dolls sometimes given to children. The dancers and dolls represent the spirits beings that can be unique to each Pueblo group and of which there may be several hundred, each with its own purpose and costume. Tattoo artwork that incorporates kachinas shows them in any of their three manifestations, often using a combination of the earthy browns, reds, blacks, yellows, and turquoises popular in the artwork of the region.
|
|
Kalachakra is Sanskrit for "time" (kala)" wheel" (chakra or cab-a) and it is taken more broadly to mean cycles of time in Tibetan Buddhism. The complex symbol for this esoteric component of Buddhist teaching is based upon Sanskrit letters that spell the main Kalachakra mantra (incantation). The stylized syllables appear on the left side of the logo, with vertical lines connecting them to the right side. From bottom to top, there is the black YA, the red RA, the white VA, the yellow LA, multicolored MA, green KSHA, and blue HAM (which also includes the top horizontal bar). Above the horizontal bar at the top are the white or red CRESCENT MOON, the red, yellow, or white SUN disk, and the little blue, green, or black FLAME on top. Beyond the main symbol there is usually a kind of frame made of flames, which corresponds to the outermost "CIRCLE of wisdom" of the MANDALA.
|
|
In Hinduism, Kali is the destructive version of Devi, the supreme goddess. Where Devi is peaceful and kind, Kali is terrifying, with her four arms holding a sword, a severed head, a strangling noose, and sometimes one arm is held in the gesture of assurance (the abhaya, or protection from fear, hand position). Colored black, with fangs, smeared with BLOOD. and tongue protruding, she represents the vicious and yet ever-present side of existence, fierce and devouring, sometimes even destroying demons.
|
|
Kanji is one of the systems of Japanese writing. It is based on characters adapted from Chinese, and to the untrained eye the two look quite similar. Many tattoos in both the East and West will use these types of symbols to spell out special or important words, such as love" (depicted).
|
|
In Japanese Buddhism, Kannon (the Chinese Kuan-Yin) is the embodiment of compassion. Committed to enlightening humankind and relieving suffering by postponing his own entrance to nirvana, he is a bodhisattva , a BUDDHA-to-be. But "he" is not always a "he." Over time, Kannon acquired the nature of mother-goddess as well, and was able to meld and change genders, combining all aspects of life. In Japanese tattoo work, Kannon is female in appearance, with long flowing robes and beautifully coifed hair, sometimes riding a dragon, sometimes a carp. The essence of merciful compassion and protection, she is among the most favored of all Buddhist deities and her long form is not unusual in large tattoos, especially back pieces.
|
|
